For the first time ever two people have won the annual astrophotography competition of the Central West Astronomical Society (CWAS).
Phil Hart of Victoria, with his evocative animation titled ‘The Moon in Motion’, shared the prize with Peter Ward of NSW with his beautiful image of the Orion Nebule called ‘Stellar Cauldron’.
Entries for this year’s eight categories came from all over Australia and were judged by world renowned astrophotographer, Dr David Malin. The categories were deep sky, wide-field, solar system, nightscapes, animated sequences (scientific and aesthetic), junior and a themed section – Memories of Apollo.
David not only assessed technical skill, but also looked for entries that captured the beauty of the sky and the intrinsic interest of astronomy in an aesthetically pleasing manner.
“The high quality of the images is a testament to the outstanding skills and talents of Australian astrophotographers”, said Astro- Fest organiser John Sarkissian.
The winners were presented with the David Malin Awards at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory’s open days for the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.
The competition’s exhibition was officially opened at the anniversary celebrations and will remain on show at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory’s Visitors Centre for the next year. Last year’s exhibition was viewed by over 200,000 people Australia-wide.